New Year's Resolutions

It's a good time to celebrate all the accomplishments of your past but also to commit to health for the future. We encourage people to think about what aspects off their life they want to improve whether it be exercise, sleep, the way they eat, spirituality, interactions with friends and commitment to different communities, but to really commit to bettering themselves.

How do I commit to exercise?

You have to find an exercise that you enjoy and then set a realistic number of minutes that you're going do it on a realistic number of days, so 20 to 30 minutes most days of the week. So that would be four to five days a week doing something you enjoy. I would encourage both cardiovascular and resistive exercises. That's the best way to get in shape, improve cardiovascular endurance and have body fitness. But you have to do something you enjoy or else you will quit.

Why is getting more sleep a good resolution?

Sleep impacts your overall health, your mood, your ability to cope with everyday life stressors. If you don't have a good night's sleep most of the things that come at you during the day are really going to stress you out or you'll just be so fatigued it'll be difficult to accomplish tasks.

How can I avoid letting my resolutions fizzle?

I think people fizzle on their new year's resolution because they fail a few days and I would tell them that every day the sun is going to come up, it's going to be a brand new day. Start over, re-resolve every day to commit to your resolution.

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New Year's resolutions can be hard to keep. Dr. Carrie Hoarty​, Internist with Boys Town Internal Medicine, discusses healthy New Year’s resolutions and gives advice on staying motivated.
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